Tennis-racket.



PATENTED OCT. 10, 1905.

A. JOHNSON. TENNIS RACKET APPLICATION FILED FEB. 25. 1903.

INVENTOR: Firt hll' 1-3 m hns an.

UNITED STATES ATENT OFFTQEO TENNlS-RACKET.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 10, 1905.

Application filed February 25, 1903. Serial No. 145,021.

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ARTHUR JOHNSON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Newark, in the county of Essex and State of New J ersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Tennis-Rackets; and 1 do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to numerals of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

The present invention has reference to improvements in tennis-rackets; and the invention has for its principal objects to provide a tennis-racket having its arrangement of gut strings strung within the oval frame of the racket in such a manner that the greatest tension will be directly about the central portion of the racket-net and will also be distributed to the sides of said central portion in four directionsnamely, in two general directions parallel with the major axis of the oval of the frame and with its handle and in two other general directions at right angles to said above-mentioned directions and parallel with the minor axis of the oval of the frame.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a racket construction, the central longitudinal arrangements of the strings of the net being such that said strings are strung more closely together than the remaining longitudinally-arranged strings and that the central lateral arrangements of the strings are also strung more closely together than the remaining laterally-extending strings, thus providing a closer net at the center of the bat or racket, whereby the strings will not wear out as quickly as heretofore, and hence will last much longer and will retain the strings much tighter for a greater length of time, at the same time providing a frame which will not be so likely to break at the base, the frame having the greatest tension at its top end and at the middle of its opposite sides and being relieved of undue tension at the remaining and weaker points in the bent frame. Furthermore, the closely placed longitudinal strings being attached directly to the throat secured in the crotch of the frame the latter is relieved from great tension at its base, which is the weakest part of the racket as now ordinarily made.

With these various objects in view the present invention consists in the novel form and construction of tennis-racket more particularly set forth hereinafter, and, furthermore, this invention consists in the several novel arrangements and combinations of parts, all of which will be hereinafter more fully set forth and then finally embodied in the clauses of the claim.

The invention is clearly illustrated in the figure of the accompanying drawing, in which is represented a face view of a tennis-racket having a net made according to the principles of my present invention, the main part of the handle being represented as broken away, but said view illustrating the greater part of the throat, which is secured between the end portions of the frame of the racket.

In said drawing the reference character 1 indicates the usual frame of wood bent into the desired shape, and 2 and 3 are the respective free end portions of said frame, which are secured in the usual manner to the opposite sides of the throat or end portion 4 of the handle.

The net of the racket is made of gut strings, which are passed through the usual arrangement of holes or perforations formed in the frame 1 and in the throat or end piece 4. These holes or perforations have not been represented in the accompanyingdrawing, because the manner of stringing the gut to provide the net is well known. In order, however, that the greatest tension may be about the central portion of the net and in lines extending from said central portion parallel to the major axis of the frame and parallel to the minor axis of said frame, the arrangement of the perforations in the upper end portion 5 of the frame and in the throat 4, as well as in the opposite side portions 6 and 7 of the frame, is such that the said holes or perforations in these parts are located more closely together than the holes or perforations in the remaining and weaker portions 8, 9, 10, and 11 of the racketframe. Thus it will be seen that I obtain acrossshaped arrangement of closely-strung strings 12 and 13,extending,respectively,in longitudinal and lateral directions across the net, the closelyplaced and longitudinally -extending strings being parallel to the major axis and the closely-placed and laterally-extending strings being parallel to the minor axis of the said frame 1. In this manner the remaining string portions 14:, 15, 16, and 17 of the net being strung the usual distances apart, a net for a tennis-racket is provided in which the cross-shaped and more closely strung gut strings provide a net having the greatest tension at the middle and also at the sides at those points where the ball generally strikes the net, and by having provided the net at these points with a greater number of strings than in the constructions as heretofore made there will be more strings to wear out, and hence the net will remain in a perfect condition for a greater length of time than heretofore. .It will also be evident that by this arrangement of strings the strain upon the frame is removed from the weaker portions of the frame, providing thereby a more even distribution of the strain upon the frame itself, and while the frame is not weakened a much greater driving power when striking a ball is the result, for this close arrangement of strings produces a greater tension and a much stifier net, the strings being also held much tighter for a greater length of time than with the ordinary construction of tennis-racket and the present arrangement of the strings thereof.

Having thus described my invention, WhatI claim is- As a new article of manufacture, a tennisracket consisting of a frame, a handle and throat 4, the said frame being made with the bent portions 8, 9, 10 and 11, said bent portions being the weakest points of the frame, and having the stronger portions at its sides, at one end, and at its throat, said stronger portions being located between said bent portions 8,9, 10 and 11, and anet strung in said frame, having a number of its centrally-located and longitudinally-extending strings 12 strung closer than the remaining longitudinallystrung strings, and having a number of its centrally-located and laterally-extending strings 13 located closer than therernaininglaterallystrung strings, said strings crossing at right angles and forming the central portion of the net, said central portion being provided with openings of a smaller mesh than in any other part of the net, substantially as and for the purposes set forth.

In testimony that I claim the invention set forth above 1 have hereunto set my hand this 21st day of February, 1903.

ARTHUR JOHNSON.

Witnesses:

FREDK. C. FRAENTZEL, GEO. D. RICHARDS. 

